7.28.2023

It's Friday -- Let's Get Out of Here

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Random Friday Morning Thoughts




This led to a lawsuit (Cause no. CV13-08-682) which was settled, but I don't have the details. 

  • The indictment in Miami against Trump was amended yesterday to add new charges. And all eyes on D.C. to see if an indictment will come down because of January 6th and all that led up to it. 




  • This is amazing way to start of an address to a "prayer breakfast" by a congresswoman from South Carolina.  Video. (It's a cringey as you think.)

  • The Texas Senate gears up for the impeachment trial of Ken Paxton.
     

  • This got a rebuke from both Senators Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer



  • A wreck in Garland shut down I-30 yesterday and, while that's not big news, I couldn't get over the number of trucks on the road. 


  • Tesla workers in Austin got a very specific warning this morning that turned out to be a false alarm. 

  • On the heels of Mitch McConnell freezing mid-sentence, comes Sen. Dianne Feinstein being told what to say. (She clearly was in favor of the bill, she just didn't understand that it was just time to vote instead of stating her reasons why she supported it.) Video.  
     
  • A crazy story with few answers so far. 


  • Colorado officially joined the Big 12 yesterday and the conference fired off quite the press release. And that's a little bit of a shot at exiting UT. (Now rumors all circulating about Oregon joining the Big 12 or Big 10 right now which would be a major coup.)

  • Flashback: The time Jerry Jones kicked off a tee in training camp. (1999.)

  • Very legal nerdy stuff for criminal practitioners: Yesterday the Austin Court of Appeals reversed a DWI conviction for failing to submit a necessity defense instruction -- there was evidence the defendant was fleeing an abusive boyfriend that night. 
  • Time which has passed since the Wise County Sheriff's Office, despite having a full male DNA profile, has failed to solve the murder of Lauren Whitener in her home at Lake Bridgeport: 4 years and days.


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7.27.2023

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts






The time Leo DiCaprio was photo'd wearing a Texas Tech cap.

  • A man has been arrested for the murder of a Fort Worth lawyer, Kimberly Knapp, who was found dead in a home in Saginaw. Police were called on a Monday after a report of a "self-inflicted" gunshot wound, but the investigation would instead lead to the arrest warrant yesterday. Here is a profile of her from a couple of years ago. 

  • On Tuesday police in Cedar Hill, after pursing a man on an Aggravated Assault charge, fired at the suspect who appears to have shot at them first. Police released the video of the shooting yesterday. There were a lot of shots fired. And he didn't die. 


  • If you haven't seen the video of Mitch McConnel having some type of medical episode yesterday which caused him to freeze mid-sentence, here you go. I can't stand the guy, but I hope he's OK. (He returned to speak briefly with reporters about 15 minutes later which is pretty surprising.)

  • Hunter Biden's guilty plea got derailed by a federal judge yesterday.  This is just a hiccup because of a little bit of limelight seeking judge, but it will get done. 
    • However, one of the reasons she didn't take the plea was because she wasn't sure one of the the statute he was charged with, lying on a gun purchase form, was constitutional.  Based upon gun laws being gutted across the nation because of the Bruen decision, she is probably right. 

  • Sinead O'Connor has died at 56.  I remember when she tore up the picture of the Pope on SNL. I was more confused than anything else, but it turn out she was probably just ahead of her time. 


  • Channel 8 had a story of a Bridgeport kid who wanted, and got, a fence around the playground area at Bridgeport Intermediate School.  This is a nice story, but I'm not real sure how it made it all the way to DFW media.

  • Legal stuff: Last week we had an appellate court in Waco release an opinion denying an appeal because the brief filed by the defendant's lawyer was believed to be not only horrible but also, the court speculated, was written by Chat GPT. I'm surprised more hasn't been made out of this. 

  • Legal nerdy weird stuff: I have no idea what's going on in this appellate case  which was dismissed yesterday other than Mr. Baby Shark was representing himself. 

  • Colorado is coming back to the Big 12! Probably.

     

  • College GameDay announced they will be at the North Carolina-South Carolina game on September 2nd for their season debut and that Lee Corso will be there. This is elder abuse. Corso, 87, missed five editions of College GameDay last year due to various illness. And when he was there, he was often confused and had to be bailed out by co-hosts. I have no idea why they are doing this. 

  • GDP news this morning. The economy just continues to roll. 

  • Messenger: Above the Fold

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7.26.2023

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts




Still funny. And I'll be dang if he didn't end up being right about Baylor winning the Big 12. I presume he was also right about said hypothetical hooker. 

  • Oh, man. I crane caught fire this morning in Hudson Yards/Hell's Kitchen area in Manhattan and fell a long way. And a video caught it when it happened. Four injuries reported so far. 

  • The Federal Reserve is expected to announce today yet another interest rate increase. Honestly, I'm not sure I understand it at this point. You can say it has worked to curtail inflation, but wouldn't you start backing off by now? 

  • I was looking at this story to see if genealogical DNA was involved but . . . 


    • . . . the following caught me off guard a bit. Normally police agencies are a little more reserved with their language before someone has been actually convicted. 

  • This is the same scheme which Steve Bannon was convicted of but who was quickly pardoned by Trump before he left office.  They collected millions from people who wanted to donate to privately building The Wall and then pocketed the money. This guy got 63 months yesterday.


  • She should have been reprimanded. She was also unnecessarily dramatic and harsh towards the defense the entire trial. 


  • Things are going great for him.

  • Aggieland is having lots of political problems lately.


  • Oh no! Not at Camp LeJeune!  The Plaintiffs' bar will turn this in to a mass class action tort by week's end. (And by that I mean no offense.)

  • I was curious about whether the headline was really a bit dramatic, but there really was a late evening court stipulation (here) in the defamation trial against Rudy.  The only thing left to determine is damages.


  • My Bridgeport math tells me that averages out to $52.5 million a year.


  • Legal-in-the-weeds stuff: Hunter Biden's law firm might be in trouble for contacting the court and making a misrepresentation. Or not. Here's the judge's order and law firm's response. I think they'll be OK. 


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